Resilience Redefined
Leia Chung's Journey Back to the Course
Small in stature, Boise State women’s golfer Leia Chung may not hit her tee shots as far as the average golfer.
Instead, the Wahiawa, Hawaii native uses a combination of precision, accuracy and mental toughness to overcome the perceived distance advantage to become arguably – already as a redshirt junior - the greatest golfer in program history.
“She’s not your typical golfer when it comes to stature and maybe how she plays the game,” Boise State women’s golf head coach Kailin Downs said. “She’s much shorter in her distance and how she hits the ball. It just goes to show that it comes down to putting the ball close to the hole and it doesn’t matter how you get it done. She grinds.”
Chung is off to the best start of her career in her third year of competition, having already claimed two individual titles to become the first Bronco to win two tournaments in the same fall season.
Her success so far this fall seems on course for the trajectory of her career following a decorated two seasons as an underclassman. But following back surgery in the fall following her sophomore campaign, Chung’s golf outlook was unclear. Backs are fickle things, and unfortunately extremely important to the success of a collegiate golfer.
Faced with an uncertain future, Chung never wavered. Forced to miss the entire 2024-25 season, she stayed the course, equipped with a diligent rehab plan, a support group of teammates, coaches and family, and a renewed sense of appreciation for the sport she loved.
Following the success of her comeback, Chung was recently awarded the athletic department’s Hammer of Resilience Award, a prestigious award handed out by the Boise State athletic training staff to a student-athlete who has demonstrated positivity and courage while battling back from a major injury.
“Leia is the definition of resilience,” said Abigail Bass, Boise State women’s golf former athletic trainer who helped Chung through the rehab process. “It's one thing to come back and do what you're doing, but she's done it better, and she's done it consistently, and she's going to continue to strive to be better. Resilience is powering through adversity, and that's exactly what she did. There's no one else who deserves this award more than her.”
Chung was a highly-decorated golfer from the get-go in high school. Hailing from Leilehua High School in Wahiawa, Hawaii, she was crowned a state champion as a freshman. Of the eight tournaments she played in as a junior, Chung won six. A year before joining the Bronco program, she tied for first in the 2021 U.S. Girls Junior Qualifier, ending up 1-under par.
It is safe to say that Boise State was ecstatic for Chung to join the program, with high hopes that she would make an immediate impact. And she instantly stood out as a difference maker.
Chung made her debut at the Hobble Creek Classic in Springville, Utah, where the freshman tied for sixth shooting eight over par, helping lead Downs to her first tournament title as a Bronco.
At her second career tournament, she became the first Bronco in program history to shoot under par in three consecutive rounds. It was becoming apparent that Chung was a unique talent.
Chung’s debut season was littered with accolades. She became the first women’s golf student-athlete in Bronco history to earn multiple Mountain West accolades in a single season after earning one MW Golfer of the Month recognition and two MW Golfer of the Week honors. At the MW Championship, she finished with the lowest score recorded by a Bronco at the conference championship in program history, shooting a 218 (71-76-71; +2).
Her sophomore season told a similar story. Chung competed in all 11 tournaments for Boise State, finishing the season with a school-record scoring average of 71.10. She finished in the top 10 in four tournaments and finished inside the top 25 in seven. She tied the program’s second-lowest 54-hole score at the New Mexico State Golf Iconic Classic with a score of 210 (68-70-72) and notched the second-lowest two-round score in program history at the Cowgirl Classic (April 3-4), tallying a 136 (66-70; -8). At the MW Championship, she led the team with a 220 (75-74-71, +4), securing the third-lowest conference championship score in program history.
Those results, especially from a sophomore, are insanely impressive. What makes it even more impressive is that Chung had been battling chronic back pain over the latter half of the spring season.
Chung had first felt an unsettling pain in her back over the course of the three-day Pizza Hut-Lady Thunderbird Invitational in St. George, Utah, March 7-9, 2024.
“It just was really, really sore when I had to sit down, which is really unusual for a 19-year-old,” Chung said. “I couldn’t sit down for longer than probably five minutes. I took Tylenol the entire tournament. I still played and did pretty well, but that’s when I knew something was a bit off.”
Competition was just heating up as the spring season was wrapping up, so Chung was determined to not miss an event. She approached Bass, and the two, in conjunction with Downs, came up with a treatment plan to manage the pain. The goal was to get through the remainder of the season, and then have Chung take an extended break from golf over the summer to let her back heal. At this point, there was very little concern of a long term injury.
As soon as the conference championship concluded, Chung went in for an X-ray but received inconclusive results. She started her golf hiatus, hoping that would help heal her back. She traveled back to Hawaii for the summer, where after showing minimal signs of improvement, she scheduled an MRI. The results showed a chronic fracture, which further supported the plan of managing symptoms.
Chung returned to the Treasure Valley in the fall of 2024 without having swung a golf club all summer. That’s when Downs began to be concerned.
“Going into the summer, I felt really good about the plan and her taking a bit of a break,” Downs said. “When she came back in August and had not swung a golf club since early July, and her back was worse than ever, that’s when it was apparent that something was clearly wrong.”
A CT scan was quickly scheduled, in which bad news was revealed: a clear-cut picture of broken bone in her back. The injury required back surgery.
The news was heartbreaking for several reasons. First, Chung would likely miss the entire 2024-25 season. Secondly, due to the nature of back injuries, there was a possibility that she wouldn’t be able to compete at the same level as before.
There was a chance that her legacy - already molded in the golf program but with two years left to continue to expand - could potentially be derailed.
“I was absolutely gutted,” Chung recalled. “I was devastated. I have never been away from golf for that long ever in my life. It was an unexplainable feeling and I don't think I ever really was prepared for that.”
Chung completed successful back surgery in October, beginning what would be a very long and extensive rehabilitation process. She had very limited mobility in the two weeks following her procedure, forcing Chung to use a walker. Even small tasks, like picking things up and tying her shoes were a challenge.
“It was very hard for me to walk,” Chung said. “Lugging a walker around as a 19-year-old was very humbling. It was a big day when I could finally walk on my own. I gained a lot of perspective with what my back provides me in general.”
Looking to keep her injured star motivated, Downs not only emphasized but required Chung to attend as many team functions as allowed. She wanted Chung to focus on being a great teammate while also keeping her motivated to continue to improve as a golfer.
“I tried to make it positive,” Downs stated. “I reminded her that she could still be a very important part of our team and play a different role for her teammates. I talked about how it was an opportunity for her to really hone in even more on her short game, knowing that was all she was going to be able to do for quite some time. She knocked both of those tasks out of the park.”
Though Chung attended as many practices and team events as she could, she still couldn’t travel with the team for tournaments. She quickly realized that missing out on those shared experiences on the road was one of the hardest parts of the experience.
“I really missed all of the team activities during the tournaments,” Chung admitted. “I missed the team dinners, all the inside jokes. I of course missed playing and competing, but I realized it was those moments with your teammates that made the trips memorable. That’s what I missed the most.”
Determined to return to the course, Chung dove headfirst into rehab. She solicited help from numerous sources in the Boise State community, and the constant communication between all stakeholders led to a smooth experience. Bass played a huge role in her rehab process, as did the Boise State women’s golf team physician, Chung’s physical therapist at Idaho Sports Medicine Institute, and Rachel Phinney, the team’s strength and conditioning coach.
The medical team’s strategy was always to ensure a plan that instituted many reps with perfect form – no matter how easy the task may seem.
“We were really intentional in making sure that I wasn’t hurting myself in a different way again,” Chung said.
She started slowly, working on some of the basic functions, such as walking, leaning over and squatting.
As the rehab progressed, Chung started tackling golf-related challenges. She was first tasked with walking a full 18 holes at practice, navigating the hills and walkways that come with it. Eventually, she tried the task while carrying a golf club. She then began to take moderate swings before fully integrating into practice. Along the way, she made sure to celebrate every victory.
“I remember the first time Leia showed me that she could touch her toes and she was so excited,” Bass said. “The biggest thing she did was find joy in those small moments. That girl is full of joy. To watch someone just be happy about being able to touch her toes just kind of brings you back to why we do this in the first place. Leia has joy in a lot of things, and I think she's contagious to be around and it made all of us excited with her.”
Her mentality throughout the process was noticed by both her teammates and the coaching staff.
“I don't know that I ever heard her complain. She just dealt with the reality of her situation. She never complained about not being able to play, never complained about having to sit out, never complained about having to come to every practice and every workout and not be able to do all the things she wanted to do. I know it bothered her, but she didn't talk about it. She just showed up every day, she did what she could, she got better at the things that she was able to do, and she was just there and a good teammate and a good participating member of what we were doing. I'm just so impressed thinking back on that.”Kailin Downs
Chung kept up with her rigorous rehab plan, and slowly but surely started to see improvements. In February, she joined the team at Mountain Classic Match Play in Palm Desert, Calif., for the team’s opening spring tournament. At this point, Chung had just begun gradually swinging, capping out at 40–50-yard wedge shots. As the spring season progressed, she would play her teammates’ tee shots and hit approach shots. Then out came the driver.
“She started shooting Leia numbers from that moment on,” Downs said. “The minute she was able to start doing it again, she just started doing her thing.”
Chung didn’t participate at all during the 2024-25 season, meaning her official comeback was slated to occur in the fall of 2025, at the team’s first official competition at the Golfweek Fall Challenge in Pawleys Island, S.C. As the date got closer, there were nerves about returning to the course. But as soon as she hit the first shot from the tee box, she was in her comfort zone.
No one would have ever known Chung hadn’t golfed in 17 months. She was absolutely spectacular.
The redshirt junior claimed the individual title at the event, finishing with a SCHOOL-RECORD SCORE of 199 (-14). Chung posted three consecutive rounds under par, setting 54-hole tournament and program records. Her third-round score of 64 (-7) tied for the second-lowest individual round in Boise State history. Chung won the tournament by nine strokes, tying a 25-year-old program-record for largest margin of victory.
“I honestly still don't think I can put into words how amazing that was,” Chung said. “I can't really tell you what I was feeling at the moment, but everything was just in sync. Everything was working at the time. And it's just one of those times when you're in the flow and you can't really explain how to replicate that or do that again. It was just an incredible feeling as an athlete to get to that point again.”
She did however replicate that success again, winning the New Mexico State Golf Iconic Classic about a month later. With the victory, Chung became the first Bronco in program history to claim two individual titles during the fall portion of the schedule.
Yesterday was HISTORIC for the #BoiseState golf teams!
— Jay Tust (@Jay_Tust) October 17, 2025
The women claimed the team and individual title at a tournament in New Mexico, and about an our later the men did the same thing at a tournament in Oregon.
Cool story: Senior Cole Rueck returned to his native state this… https://t.co/rr61AEvdP1 pic.twitter.com/ZF5eQO2I3M
“What she has done is so impressive,” Downs said. “The part that she’s really grown into is the maturity and emotional management on the course. She’s a perfectionist. She’s very hard on herself. She’s competitive, and she’s learned to channel it because while it’s a good thing, it can also be detrimental if you’re using it the wrong way. I credit it to her appreciating the game, having sat out for a year. She knows how much it hurts not to play, and she’s just enjoying the whole process of it all.”
Chung concurs. Though the injury – and the rehab process that came with it – were objectively difficult challenges, the ability to fight through gave her a resounding confidence.
“I learned that I can do hard things. I can be resilient. I can push back on something that supposedly would have set me back really far. It motivated me and pushed me to be a much better version of myself, a much better golfer. It pushed me past the limits of what I thought I could do and couldn’t do.”Leia Chung
So #WhatsNext for Chung? Downs believes that this experience, combined with her natural skill set, could lead an extremely motivated Chung to continue to add to what already is an incredible Bronco legacy.
“She’s always loved the game of golf, but it’s clear she appreciates it even more because it was taken from her for a stretch of time,” Downs said. “She’s had so many close calls during her career. She got edged out for all-conference honors and making it to regionals as an at-large bid. Before this injury, all of that left a taste in her mouth about how close she really is. Now that she’s sat out for a year, she has an appreciation for who she is as a player and how good she can be. I can’t wait to see where she goes.”